Weekly musings on our culture and the Christian Faith.

What is a “Calling” Anyway?

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Matthew 16:24

When someone says that they have been “called” to a vocation or mission, have you ever wondered, how?

Is a calling manifested in a burning bush, as with Moses, or a lightning bolt, as with Martin Luther? These two instances serve to point out, that there is no one way God’s calling is communicated and received.

I have heard it said, that there are three phases to a calling – the first being the calling itself, the second, being the discovery or recognition of the calling, and finally, the response to the calling.

I would liken the first phase, when the calling is manifest in a succession of events in one’s life, to links in a chain that are connected to each other for one purpose.

Seeing the chain beyond just its links, would be the second phase, and finally, our response to that realization, would be the third.

Living Forward

As I was leaving the bookstore the other day, the title of a book caught my eye – “Living Forward”. Although the text of the book had no spiritual applications, the title could have been the title of anyone’s faith journey.

In all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:6

Each new day is an opportunity to live forward and be attentive to events in our life that may be forming a chain – a calling, or in some cases, a divine re-direction intended to put us back on the straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life.